Integrated Education Fundhttp://www.ief.org.uk
Fri, 24 Jan 2014 14:36:52 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.8.1Drumlins IPS hoping their wait for a new school will end soon.http://www.ief.org.uk/2014/01/24/drumlins-ips-hoping-wait-new-school-will-end-soon/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2014/01/24/drumlins-ips-hoping-wait-new-school-will-end-soon/#commentsFri, 24 Jan 2014 14:34:16 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=13007After ten years of campaigning the Drumlins Integrated Primary School community are close to realising their dream of a new school. The former library headquarters building in Ballynahinch has been identified as a suitable site and an application for planning permission has been submitted. Drumlins IPS was founded in 2004 and in spite of being […]

]]>After ten years of campaigning the Drumlins Integrated Primary School community are close to realising their dream of a new school.

The former library headquarters building in Ballynahinch has been identified as a suitable site and an application for planning permission has been submitted.

Drumlins IPS was founded in 2004 and in spite of being accommodated in mobile classrooms in an industrial estate in Ballynahinch, the school has flourished, with 160 pupils on the roll. It has been over-subscribed for the past five years.

Since its establishment governors, staff and parents have been committed to securing a new site and a permanent building for the school. Principal Janice Marshall says she is delighted by the recent progress in the campaign, which would give the school more permanent roots in the County Down town. She added

“We are hoping we will finally have good news on the building to mark our tenth anniversary; it will be a great reward for all the families and staff who’ve had to work in unsatisfactory circumstances for so long.”

Architects have drawn up plans for a new building on the town centre site and the school is working with the Department of Education to develop the school for the future.

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2014/01/24/drumlins-ips-hoping-wait-new-school-will-end-soon/feed/0Time is running out to act on the Lobbying Billhttp://www.ief.org.uk/2014/01/08/time-runing-act-lobbying-bill/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2014/01/08/time-runing-act-lobbying-bill/#commentsWed, 08 Jan 2014 16:15:11 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=12818As the Lobbying Bill reaches its final parliamentary stages, we are alarmed that Part 2 has hardly been amended despite the concerns of hundreds of charities and campaigning organisations. It remains a serious threat to freedom of speech and association and would silence non-party campaigning on some of the most important issues facing the country. […]

]]>As the Lobbying Bill reaches its final parliamentary stages, we are alarmed that Part 2 has hardly been amended despite the concerns of hundreds of charities and campaigning organisations. It remains a serious threat to freedom of speech and association and would silence non-party campaigning on some of the most important issues facing the country.

This is a deeply unpopular Bill, the need for which has yet to be substantiated, even at this late stage. We hope that a combination of Labour, Cross-bench peers and some backbench Liberal Democrat and Conservative peers will be able to defeat some of the worst elements of the Bill in votes at Lords Report stage on 15 January.

The Integrated Education Fund thinks Part 2 of the Bill should either be withdrawn or radically overhauled at Lords Report stage. We would urge you to write to your peers, MPs and Ministers immediately if you haven’t already done so. You can access template letters and names and addresses of peers, MPs and Ministers here.

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2014/01/08/time-runing-act-lobbying-bill/feed/0The business of integrated education: Margaret Mountford visits Hazelwoodhttp://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/10/business-integrated-education-margaret-mountford-visits-hazelwood/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/10/business-integrated-education-margaret-mountford-visits-hazelwood/#commentsTue, 10 Dec 2013 10:46:06 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=12772Business director and lawyer Margaret Mountford, known for her appearances on BBC’s The Apprentice, visited Northern Ireland on Monday (9 December) to endorse the work of the Integrated Education Fund and to see at first hand new facilities which the IEF has helped establish at Hazelwood Integrated College in Newtownabbey. And the TV presenter said […]

]]>Business director and lawyer Margaret Mountford, known for her appearances on BBC’s The Apprentice, visited Northern Ireland on Monday (9 December) to endorse the work of the Integrated Education Fund and to see at first hand new facilities which the IEF has helped establish at Hazelwood Integrated College in Newtownabbey. And the TV presenter said there is no reason to keep children apart at school according to their religious background.

Margaret Mountford, who was born and brought up in Northern Ireland, is also an academic and chairs a school board in London. She admired Hazelwood IC’s new STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) centre for post-GCSE students, which opened in October after delays over planning issues at the beginning of term. The buildings were installed thanks to £150,000 in grants from the IEF and the Belfast Trust for Integrated Education.

Margaret Mountford heard that the school is actively working to build relationships with local employers and industries in order to make the world of work real to pupils. After talking to business studies and STEM students at Hazelwood IC, Margaret met supporters of integrated education from the business sector, and discussed the contribution a de-segregated system could make to a more cohesive and prosperous society.

At the end of her visit, Margaret said, “Seeing the young people from different backgrounds and cultures working together to prepare for the world ahead of them is inspiring and a fantastic image of a new Northern Ireland. I hear from the business community here that there is an urgent need to move away from an expensive, segregated education system to a network of properly-resourced schools preparing pupils for the global jobs market. It’s time to recognise that diversity means strength, and integrated schools have been demonstrating that for many years now.”

Hazelwood IC Principal Kathleen Gormley commented, “Everyone was delighted to welcome Margaret Mountford to the school and the pupils really enjoyed engaging with her, and hearing Margaret’s story. We are very proud that on a trip home to Northern Ireland, she chose to visit an integrated school to see for herself how young people of all backgrounds and abilities can thrive together. It is great to be able to show guests what donors and supporters of integration have achieved by helping us set up the new STEM centre.”

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/10/business-integrated-education-margaret-mountford-visits-hazelwood/feed/0Education Minister says Integrated College Dungannon leads the wayhttp://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/06/education-minister-says-integrated-college-dungannon-leads-way/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/06/education-minister-says-integrated-college-dungannon-leads-way/#commentsFri, 06 Dec 2013 11:10:46 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=12765John O’Dowd gave a resounding endorsement to Integrated College Dungannon (ICD) on Wednesday (4 December) when he visited the school to learn about its restorative justice practices. The Minister for Education joined Dungannon and South Tyrone Councillor Kim Ashton at the college, where they met school principal Andrew Sleeth, staff and students. The college has […]

]]>John O’Dowd gave a resounding endorsement to Integrated College Dungannon (ICD) on Wednesday (4 December) when he visited the school to learn about its restorative justice practices. The Minister for Education joined Dungannon and South Tyrone Councillor Kim Ashton at the college, where they met school principal Andrew Sleeth, staff and students.

The college has made a commitment to integrating restorative justice into the school’s ethos and discipline policy, promoting mutual respect and tackling bullying. Since 2007, all students joining ICD in Year 8 are trained in these practices, as are the staff during staff development days.

The guests were impressed by the ways in which the Student Support Team, Staff Support Team, Face to Faith programme, Paired Reading, Mentoring Programme, Social Action Committee, Student Council, and many more programmes in the college are supported by restorative practices. Staff and pupils explained how restorative practice is alive in every aspect of college development and life, from the classroom to the college development plan.

Speaking at the school, Minister O’Dowd congratulated staff and students of ICD and said “This school is certainly way ahead of other schools in relation to their restorative practices and I would recommend to any other school that they should pay a visit to this college. This college has reinforced the importance of giving the students the ownership of their learning, their behaviour and the contributions they can make. Students are aware of what the school expects the staff to do with them and vice versa – this is a quiet revolution and in a style that I have not witnessed in other schools… This school thinks outside the box and I am very impressed”.

The Education Minister’s latest visit to Integrated College Dungannon follows a meeting at Stormont last year when the Minister for Justice, David Ford, invited ICD students to a showcase of restorative practices at Parliament Buildings. On that occasion John O’Dowd expressed a wish to learn more about how this works throughout the college and promotes good practice in teaching and learning.

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/06/education-minister-says-integrated-college-dungannon-leads-way/feed/0The latest edition of Learning Together is out now!!!http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/05/learning-together/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/05/learning-together/#commentsThu, 05 Dec 2013 11:14:33 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=12747The latest edition of the Integrated Education Fund’s Learning Together newsletter is now available to download from our website. It has already been delivered to more than 20,000 students in integrated schools throughout Northern Ireland. The newsletter is packed full of the latest news and pictures from integrated schools, stories of the important work carried […]

]]>The latest edition of the Integrated Education Fund’s Learning Together newsletter is now available to download from our website. It has already been delivered to more than 20,000 students in integrated schools throughout Northern Ireland. The newsletter is packed full of the latest news and pictures from integrated schools, stories of the important work carried out by the IEF and our donors, survey results from recent polls, blogs, reports on IEF fundraising activities and much more.

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/12/05/learning-together/feed/0Integrated schools’ past pupils celebrate the best of Northern Irelandhttp://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/29/integrated-schools-past-pupils-celebrate-best-northern-ireland/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/29/integrated-schools-past-pupils-celebrate-best-northern-ireland/#commentsFri, 29 Nov 2013 15:28:22 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=12741Stalwart supporters of the integrated education fund joined new friends and old at the Meantime Brewery in Greenwich on Wednesday (27 November) at a fundraiser hosted by the London Past Pupils group, which was formed by alumni of integrated schools. The theme was “Celebrating the Best of Northern Ireland” and guests enjoyed great craic and […]

]]>Stalwart supporters of the integrated education fund joined new friends and old at the Meantime Brewery in Greenwich on Wednesday (27 November) at a fundraiser hosted by the London Past Pupils group, which was formed by alumni of integrated schools.

The theme was “Celebrating the Best of Northern Ireland” and guests enjoyed great craic and traditional food from home in the Old Brewery at the Royal Naval College. The setting, across the Thames from Canary Wharf, was spectacular and the historic building added to the atmosphere.

Past pupils were well-represented in the entertainment, with music from Meghann Ward, Mickey Owens and Fergal McMahon going down a storm.

During the course of the evening several past pupils addressed the guests on the purpose of the event, which was to showcase Northern Ireland at its best and to highlight the important role integrated education plays in our society.

Thank you to Adrian Dunbar who conducted the auction, announced the winners of the draw and spoke compellingly about the work of the IEF.

The Fund is very grateful to Ciaran McGonagle who donated the auction prize of a helicopter ride over London, which raised £300, and to all those who generously contributed raffle prizes.

We were delighted to welcome new faces to the event including actor Neil Morrissey and Ivan Lewis MP and a special mention goes to Pradeep Madhavan from Belfast who introduced himself to the integrated education movement with a star operatic performance!

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/29/integrated-schools-past-pupils-celebrate-best-northern-ireland/feed/0Stiff Little Fingers pledge campaign to support IEFhttp://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/15/stiff-little-fingers-pledge-campaign-support-ief/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/15/stiff-little-fingers-pledge-campaign-support-ief/#commentsFri, 15 Nov 2013 10:02:09 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=12714We are delighted that Stiff Little Fingers are continuing their support for the IEF through their pledge campaign. Thanks to fans pledging, the band has now reached their target meaning they can make and release their album. The band has very kindly offered to donate 5% of any money raised after the goal is reached […]

]]>We are delighted that Stiff Little Fingers are continuing their support for the IEF through their pledge campaign. Thanks to fans pledging, the band has now reached their target meaning they can make and release their album. The band has very kindly offered to donate 5% of any money raised after the goal is reached to the Integrated Education Fund.

Fans can pledge money to “pre-buy” the record, spend a day in the studio, signed merchandise and much more while helping the band and the Integrated Education Fund.

Last year, the band used their homecoming gig at Belfast’s Ulster Hall to highlight their support and also to make a financial contribution to the Integrated Education Fund.

Stiff Little Fingers is a punk band originally from Belfast, Northern Ireland made up of Jake, Ali, Steve and Ian. The band formed in 1977 and were at the forefront of the punk movement in Northern Ireland. They were renowned for lyrics and music that melded the personal and political, writing about their experience of life in Belfast with classics like “Suspect Device”, “Wasted Life” and “Alternative Ulster”.

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/15/stiff-little-fingers-pledge-campaign-support-ief/feed/0Integrated education supporters celebrated at the House of Lordshttp://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/08/house-lords/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/08/house-lords/#commentsFri, 08 Nov 2013 14:00:34 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/?p=12696Baroness May Blood, Campaign Chair of the Integrated Education Fund, welcomed around 120 guests to the House of Lords on Tuesday 5 November for a dinner celebrating the crucial role played by our supporters around the world. Sponsored very generously by the Carson family, the London event was a chance to thank the stalwart friends […]

]]>Baroness May Blood, Campaign Chair of the Integrated Education Fund, welcomed around 120 guests to the House of Lords on Tuesday 5 November for a dinner celebrating the crucial role played by our supporters around the world.

Sponsored very generously by the Carson family, the London event was a chance to thank the stalwart friends who assist the IEF in our work to help make integration, not separation, the norm in Northern Ireland’s schools.

The party was addressed by Kathleen Gormley, Principal of Hazelwood Integrated College, and by Christopher Madden, who is a former pupil of Ulidia Integrated College in Carrickfergus.

Christopher told the audience: “For 21 years the Integrated Education Fund, with its key actors, particularly Baroness Blood, has strived to create an education system in Northern Ireland that promotes togetherness. To me, it seems quite simple: a system which promotes respect, tolerance, and understanding for all people in our society will engender a more respectful, tolerant, and understanding population.”

Kathleen described how Hazelwood IC meets the challenges presented by a multi-cultural school population in an interface area. She added “I am overwhelmed by the support given to the college in many ways. At Hazelwood we have a lot to be grateful for and never for one minute should you doubt the difference you make. People in this room tonight have given us inspiration to challenge ourselves and others not to accept easy answers or to just go with the flow. Thank you.”

Donors were joined by a number of politicians and senior diplomats as well as past pupils of integrated schools. Supporters travelled from far and wide to enjoy the celebration and Baroness Blood took the opportunity to acknowledge the contribution of the many steadfast friends of the Fund who had not been able to make the journey on this occasion. Declaring that the IEF would continue to campaign at a crucial time in Northern Ireland, Baroness Blood said

“We have had 100 years of separate education. We know it will not change overnight but change has started and mark my words – change will come. We will continue to provide the evidence that public opinion is on the side of change…We will provide a vision for a better education system based on integration and a road map as to how to get there.”

The event, in the Cholmondeley Room of the House of Lords, included an excellent dinner and a fine view, from the terrace, of the Guy Fawkes’ Night fireworks.

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/08/house-lords/feed/0Baroness Blood: Integrated education is a musthttp://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/01/baroness-blood-integrated-education-is-a-must/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/01/baroness-blood-integrated-education-is-a-must/#commentsFri, 01 Nov 2013 10:00:36 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/index.php/?p=12649Recently Education Minister John O’Dowd gave his official response to the report from the Ministerial Advisory Group on Shared Education. I was heartened to hear that he places sharing at the heart of education. I hope that this means true sharing for our young people; that pupils of all traditions and backgrounds spend every day […]

]]>Recently Education Minister John O’Dowd gave his official response to the report from the Ministerial Advisory Group on Shared Education. I was heartened to hear that he places sharing at the heart of education. I hope that this means true sharing for our young people; that pupils of all traditions and backgrounds spend every day together as a matter of course, reflecting the increasingly diverse nature of the world of work which awaits them.

Of course, any steps to address the fundamental problems in our education structure are laudable steps forward. Mr O’Dowd acknowledged that the recommendations from MAGSE are a vision for the “short to medium term”. The Minister also said, in response to a question in the Assembly, that the ultimate aim is an education system without separation. So let’s see real, measurable progress towards that ultimate aim.

I must admit that, given the current stagnation over ESA and the sluggish pace of the area-based planning process, I am afraid that progress will be slow; we really cannot afford this, however.

We cannot afford to be sidetracked, surely, by expensive projects which promise a degree of contact but keep young people in segregated institutions, marked out by distinct uniforms and distinct school governance.

The current Area-based planning process should afford the ideal opportunity for reshaping the education system to meet the public wish for integration. However, some plans have already been agreed which do not seem to reflect the Minister’s wish for creative solutions, but which rather copper-fasten separation.

I would be glad to see the process of transformation, through which any school can become integrated in response to local demand, made clearer and easier. But recent surveys have shown that the majority of parents did not know that transformation of an existing school was at all possible; it was not the process which was off-putting but rather the apparent reluctance of officialdom when it comes to engaging with parents and school communities over the issue of separation and integration. Politicians and advisors must be held to the Good Friday Agreement, which places a statutory duty on the government to encourage and facilitate integrated education.

Let us make sure we continue to travel the path towards the education system to which the Minister has declared he aspires – one which is not blighted by separation; one where children learn, grown and develop together, in every classroom, every day.

]]>http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/11/01/baroness-blood-integrated-education-is-a-must/feed/0Scarecrow Square winners collect their rewardshttp://www.ief.org.uk/2013/10/24/scarecrow-square-winners-collect-their-rewards/
http://www.ief.org.uk/2013/10/24/scarecrow-square-winners-collect-their-rewards/#commentsThu, 24 Oct 2013 14:08:12 +0000http://www.ief.org.uk/index.php/?p=12644Talented teams from integrated primary schools have been rewarded for their inspiring scarecrow creations with new saplings for their schools. The creative teams were at CAFRE campus at Greenmount to celebrate their win in the Integrated Primary Schools’ Scarecrow competition at the 2013 Airtricity Garden Festival in Hillsborough, in May. The competition, which has been […]

]]>Talented teams from integrated primary schools have been rewarded for their inspiring scarecrow creations with new saplings for their schools. The creative teams were at CAFRE campus at Greenmount to celebrate their win in the Integrated Primary Schools’ Scarecrow competition at the 2013 Airtricity Garden Festival in Hillsborough, in May.

The competition, which has been running for eight years, is sponsored by Allianz. It is organised by Festival Director Claire Faulkner and the Integrated Education Fund. ‘Scarecrow Square’ has become a feature of the annual show, greeting visitors with a crowd of imaginative creatures from all over Northern Ireland. This year, the schools were invited to enter up to six scarecrows on the theme of storytellers or musicians, or simply to make a traditional figure.